"Ron, without reading minds, can you tell if someone is lying?" Superman looked at Martian Manhunter and asked.
"I can tell if a person doesn't mean what they say." Martian Manhunter gestured but didn't seem to know how to explain it to Earthlings. He dropped his hands and said, "In short, I can see how far the words someone speaks are from what they're really thinking."
"Can you also detect unconscious embellishments?"
"No, everyone subjectively embellishes themselves. I can only determine if they are hiding important facts."
Batman nodded and said, "That's enough for me. How much someone's narrative is mixed with personal emotions, I can judge."
Superman nodded and then looked at Batman, "I don't want to turn this into an interrogation session, and that goes even if you're the one grilling everyone else. However, I also believe you can judge whether they're suspects by their words and actions. So what's your plan?"
"Everyone will give their account first." Batman said, "To me, you're all just ordinary people. Untrained individuals always have gaps in their stories. The more they talk, the more they'll slip up."
"I have no objections to that." Wonder Woman said, "I can go first, but I really don't know what to say. Should I introduce my biography?"
"No need to start that early." Batman said, "Just talk about what you did after the vampire incident erupted, how you heard the news, what you did afterward, and how you view the situation. The more detailed, the better, down to every hour of every day if possible."
Wonder Woman immediately made a face like she'd bitten into something sour, and in fact, all the superheroes in attendance grimaced.
"Hey! Batman! Not everyone has a photographic memory like you," Jenna complained. "I can't even remember what I ate the night before last. You want me to remember by the hour?"
"Just say as much as you can remember. Speak in chronological order. If you can't remember something, don't make it up. Just say that you can't remember."
"I'm afraid you're just going to hear a whole lot of 'I can't remember,'" Aquaman sighed, "The rise of the vampires was months ago."
Batman seemed completely unfazed. Superman said, "Wonder Woman will go first, I'll go second, who wants to be third?"
"I'll go," said Jenna. "If I speak now, I'll remember some. If I listen to you all, I'll forget even more."
Her words reminded everyone that it was an advantage to speak sooner, though some people thought having fewer corroborating testimonies before them might make them appear less suspect.
Of course, others believed that sharing more details would work in their favor, so they decided to speak later, taking the time to think things through.
Wonder Woman began her account.
Her start wasn't bad; she first heard about the resurgence of vampires while traveling to an East African country as Princess of Paradise Island. Her plane had barely landed when she received a communication from the Justice League.
But at that time, she didn't take it seriously. Vampires were expanding in cities, which was too far from the Amazon rainforest.
Moreover, for many years, vampires would stir up trouble once every century, which for an Immortal Species like Wonder Woman, wasn't really news. She brushed it off after reading the notice.
Then came a series of attacks. She was called back to the Justice League to start addressing vampire attacks all over the world.
When the Justice League handles global incidents, there's an implicit division of labor. Normally, superheroes like Superman and Wonder Woman put out fires globally, specifically beyond America. Within America, it's mainly Batman and a few others with their cities to protect.
Since Wonder Woman had diplomatic duties in Africa, she took care of the African Continent. However, according to her, Africa was likely too hot and had too much daylight, hardly a place for vampires. So, later on, she went to the Middle East and West Asia.
Wonder Woman had a good memory; she practically recounted every day's schedule from months ago up until now. Because she dealt with few incidents, most of her time was spent reading reports, attending exhibitions and press conferences, and conducting leader visits, which was enough to put someone to sleep.
It took Wonder Woman almost two and a half hours to finish her recollection. Superman yawned incessantly, the Magic Twins had slept six times, Aquaman's head was nearly buried in his glass fishbowl, and Cyborg, responsible for the meeting minutes, was diligent. Martian Manhunter listened attentively as it was his duty.
Realizing it had gone silent, Jenna finally woke up. She yawned, stretched, and with bleary eyes, turned to Batman.
Batman didn't say anything but looked at Superman and said, "Next."
So Superman began recounting his recent experiences.
Perhaps because he was a reporter, his storytelling was much more concise than Wonder Woman, but since he was a main force against vampires, he had dealt with thousands of incidents, big and small, over the past few months.
And though he often didn't seem to think much with his super brain, his super memory was a passive skill. When he wanted to, he could describe exactly what he was doing every second with perfect accuracy, so his account was even longer.
After a full four and a half hours, Superman finished detailing these past few months bit by bit. By the end, Martian Manhunter patted him on the shoulder, Aquaman sighed at him, and Cyborg showed full admiration.
"Seriously, Batman, I think the Justice League really needs an 'Employee of the Month' award, and it should go to him right now!" Wonder Woman said, pointing at Superman.
Indeed, Superman had been non-stop for 24 hours a day over the last few months. He still had his reporter job during the day. Especially since he hoped to use his profession to ease the public's panic, he would write many extra articles on top of his regular work.
Then he had to fly around the world putting out fires. At any large-scale vampire attack, you'd find him there. Superman's definition of large-scale was that he rescued anyone he could hear calling for help. These past few months, he had been tirelessly busy, working every hour of every day.
In the past, other members of the Justice League thought Superman was the strongest among them and had little trouble handling such matters. Now it seemed that Superman's strength was one thing, but his energy was unmatched by any ordinary person.
By this time, night had fallen. When it was Jenna's turn, she cried out in a hoarse voice, "I'm starving! I skipped lunch! Aliens need to eat too!!!"
Her suggestion gained consensus among most present, as after all, the majority of those there did need to eat.
But now arises the problem: the conference room has been sealed off, where will the food come from?
As a result, Batman pressed a button, and a passage opened in the ceiling of the conference room. Food waterfall down, along with a series of kitchenware, including frying pans, a microwave, and even two bottles of wine.
Superman sighed and said, "Alright, I'll cook for you. Who has a gluten allergy?"
"You had thought of this already, hadn't you?" Wonder Woman asked Batman somewhat helplessly.
Batman shook his head and said, "This is a base used by superheroes, not your home. It's only normal that every room has an emergency food supply."
"How many days' worth have you stored?" Green Lantern asked.
"Ten years."
Jenna almost spat out the water in her mouth.
"Isn't that abnormal? Do you think we're going to be trapped here for ten years?!"
"It's just being prepared."
Batman also stood up and walked over to check The Flash's wounds. The Flash made a sour face, but did not forget to toss potato chips into his mouth with the hand that was still functioning.
Batman saw that the wounds were likely caused by two bullets, one hitting the shoulder, the other lodged in the flesh of the arm. The Flash was lucky; neither had hit bone, which is why he could be sitting here.
"Why didn't you use Divine Speed to reverse time?" Batman asked.
"I'm afraid that strange force might appear again," The Flash replied listlessly. "I feel like it's targeting me; I don't dare bet on whether that guy is nearby or not."
Smart move, Batman assessed.
The Flash's face brightened visibly. Grinning at Batman, he said, "I knew you'd praise me. I'm not always that oblivious."
"No one said you were oblivious." Batman bandaged him and then said, "Can you describe the force that stopped you from running in more detail?"
"Actually, it didn't stop me from running; it just tugged at my leg," The Flash replied, taking a sandwich that Jenna handed to him and stuffing it into his mouth as he spoke. "Divine Speed is powerful, but I still need to be able to run. If you tie up my legs, I can't just conjure up Divine Speed out of thin air."
"So it did inhibit your running?"
The Flash nodded.
"That means he understands you well."
The Flash stopped chewing for a moment, but then forcefully chewed a few times and swallowed in one go. He then said, "It's not surprising; after all, he's a member of the Justice League and understands each of us."
"But he chose to target you first."
The Flash's expression turned even less pleasant as he said, "Maybe because my weakness is the most obvious."
"It could also be because he cares about you the most," Batman remarked nonchalantly. "Even if he wants to deal with us one by one, he would start with you, for some sort of unique and sinister ceremonial sensation."
The Flash closed his eyes.
"Why have you started eating tuna?" Jenna asked Zan, looking puzzled. "Didn't you say it was all slimy and sticky?"
Zan shook his head, took a bite of the sandwich, and pulled a face of distaste, yet he took another bite.
Jenna looked around, snatched the sandwich away, and said, "If you don't like it, don't eat it. I'll find you a ham and cheese one."
Shiller watched Jenna's retreating figure, feeling a pang in his heart only now, as if assuming vampires couldn't eat human food.
But in reality, it wasn't that complicated. Shiller simply wasn't accustomed to such cheap sandwiches; changing the flavor wouldn't make a difference.
Seizing the moment while Jenna was away, Shiller came to a table next to the conference room. Watching Superman cook, which was really just heating up sandwiches in the microwave and frying some eggs or pancakes.
The aroma wafted over, and Superman placed a plate of scrambled eggs on the table. Shiller pretended to be extremely interested, immediately scooped up a big spoonful, and gave Superman a thumbs up with a mouthful.
Superman smiled and said, "Glad you like it. I was worried I put a bit too much butter."
Aquaman also joined in, stuffing a tuna sandwich into the microwave. Martian Manhunter offered to help Superman, while Wonder Woman pulled out her laptop, attempting to work.
"There's no internet here? … You're blocking that too? Fine, you're right as always, Great Detective."
The conference room had quite a convivial atmosphere: eating scrambled eggs, sipping whiskey. Shiller glanced over at the conference table and cracked a smile.
For a normal person, it was natural to speak their mind. But for the mole, besides having to repeatedly consider if their own words had any loopholes, they also had to think about whether they could find any flaws in what others were saying. Isn't it the one who's lost their appetite who feels awkward?